New Guidelines for Aquaculture in Farms and Tanks

INDIA - The National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB) has announced guidelines to help fulfil the country's aquaculture potential through a set of intensive farming guidelines in ponds and tanks.

The board says that its decision comes in view of the tremendous potential that exists in India to augment fish production from freshwater aquaculture resources with concerted efforts to mobilise farmers application of appropriate technologies for sustainable fish farming and fish seed production and availability of institutional finance

According to Food & Beverage News, an amount of Rs 6,200,000,000 has been earmarked for development of intensive aquaculture in ponds and tanks and the proposed activities are expected to generate substantial investments resulting in an annual production of 265,000,000 tonnes of fish as well as creating employment opportunities in the rural areas.

According to NFDB, about 2.41 million hectares of water bodies are available for freshwater aquaculture in the country, of which the majority area falls under tropical warm water conditions and is amenable for increasing production and productivity levels to about 5 tonnes per hectare per annum.

With better inputs in terms of seeds, feed and fertilisers, it may be possible to bring in about 8 lakh hectares under intensive aquaculture, in a span of 5-6 years. Through adequate forward and backward linkages, another 50,000 hectares of new area can also be brought under the fold of intensive aquaculture, reports Food & Beverage News